HR and Innovation

Innovation is a front burner issue in the boardroom these days.  So, it is no surprise that everybody is asking, “How do I contribute to the corporate innovation agenda?”  I was recently asked by an HR executive what role that function can play in this area.

Strangely, there are many who opine that HR has no role in innovation.  This is definitely not the case.  The human resources within a company are the single most important ingredient in the innovation success formula.  It follows quite naturally that the HR function must have an impact on the company’s innovation capacity.  The only real question is how HR can ensure that this impact is a positive one.

The role of HR in innovation is a supporting role.   HR should not try and insert itself into the realm of defining or managing innovation activity (with the obvious exception of looking inwardly at HR function innovation.)  Rather HR, can best support the innovation agenda by sticking to its knitting and focusing on three key theme.

Recruitment
It begins with hiring the best people.  HR must work diligently to make sure that right systems are in place to attract, identify, and capture the best talent to drive innovation.  This doesn’t mean going out and recruiting an innovation guru.  This means that every person hired into the organization from the janitor to the executive staff must be the top talent available to the organization.

This is harder than it may sound.  Over the years, I have come to believe that most managers have no clue about how to find and select the right people to hire.  HR must provide assistance in this area.  The HR team should work with other parts of the organization to create the best message and delivery to fill the candidate pipeline with the best people.  HR must train managers on the best practices for creating employee and job profiles that can be used to properly screen candidates.  Managers need help in constructing the process of interviewing and vetting candidates.  One area I see sore lacking in most managers is interview skills.  HR should provide coach to hiring managers in the basics of situation-based interview techniques and candidate evaluation around the metrics of aptitude, attitude, and achievement.

Rewards
Everyone likes to be recognized.  This is true in all aspects of life.  In the office, it has specific meaning and value.  The right rewards system provides a powerful for reinforcing commitment, directing employee professional growth, and shaping the corporate culture.

HR departments must look at the reward mechanisms in place and ask if they are doing the right things to develop the employees and culture of the company.  This should include compensation strategies, performance management tools, and other targeted recognition and reward programs.  I am always amazed when I see companies that have programs that recognize how long an employee has been punching the clock but don’t think to reward exceptional contributions.  Performance reviews are also a pet peeve of mine in this area.  Few companies are measuring the right things when it comes to promoting the development of innovation workers.  HR managers should take a hard look at how they are trying to develop these critical resources.

Retention
The cost of losing a key employee is very high.  So, it must be a primary objective to retain the top performers in the organization.  This of course suggests that HR needs to work with managers to have a system that identifies who are the key people in the organization and where are the risks.  With that information, the company can then consider what tools and actions are needed to mitigate these personnel risks proactively.  Remember, it is always easier and less costly to enfranchise someone before they have made a decision to leave.

While all this might sound like the meat and potatoes of HR, it truly is where the HR function has the biggest impact on an organization’s innovation (and thus value creation) potential.  Sometimes blocking and tackling is what’s needed to win.

Comments

[Chandra Prakash]

It is right but not totally.